The Journal devotes much of its content to the myriad aspects of educating and training military personnel in articles emphasizing institutional, pedagogical, and historical perspectives.

Featured content in the issue includes, the Professional Military Education (PME) Round Table section, which looks principally at the efforts of select components within Marine Corps Training and Education Command to enhance the development of Marines through the employment of innovative instructional and career-management techniques.

Articles in the current issue include: Educating an Enlisted Force That Can Win in the Future, How Senior Leader Education Supports the Warfighter, The Education of the Enlightened Soldier, Informal and Incidental Learning in the Marine Corps, plus historical perspectives such as The Cavalcade of Universal Military Training: Training and Education within the Experimental Demonstration Unit.

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Welcome back to our three-part War of 1812 Series. In the last post, we discussed the struggles of the American army, including ill-preparedness and lack of strong leadership. In this series, we’ll start to discover how the American military grew into a force to be reckoned with.

By the end of 1812, after defeats at Detroit, the River Raisin, and Queenston, the Americans had actually lost some of its lands to Great Britain. President James Madison and his administration realized the need to overhaul the military to start winning.

One of the most significant improvements to the American side was the strengthening of the U.S. Navy. Capt. Isaac Chauncey was appointed to command in the Great Lakes. He began to build ships and embark on a naval arms race.

President James Madison also appointed a new secretary of war, Brig. Gen. John Armstrong. And in January 1813, Congress decided to increase the number of officers and raised the pay of all ranks. A private was to earn $8 a month, a substantial increase over the $5 they were receiving at the start of the war. President Madison named four new major generals.

Working together, the Army’s senior officer, Maj. Gen. Henry Dearborn, and Captain Chauncey convinced Armstrong to raid York, modern-day Toronto, where they planned to capture or destroy vessels being built there. The raid was successful, giving the Americans a confidence boost.

General Henry Dearborn followed up this achievement by taking Fort George on the Niagara River. However, their victories were followed by defeats at Stoney Creek and Beaver Dams. The two-pronged campaign to seize Montreal in the fall was likewise defeated at Chateauguay and Crysler’s Farm.

In the west, however, Army-Navy cooperation led to the recapture of Detroit. The war along the border with Canada in 1813 saw a string of bitter defeats punctuated by a victory in the Old Northwest. Perhaps most importantly, the Army was recovering from its early mistakes and adapting to the challenges of the war on the frontiers. Officers and soldiers were learning their trade and gaining valuable experience. But it still wasn’t quite enough. Despite increases in pay, not many citizens were willing to join the “Regular Army.” Despite Madison’s new leadership appointments, there was still a lack of experienced officers and noncommissioned officers to train new regiments. American soldiers continued to lack basic necessities such as warm clothing and food.

The British wanted to divert American regulars from the Canadian border and shift their focus to defending their own land. One way to do this was via a naval blockade. The only problem was that with the vast majority of the British army fighting against the French Emperor Napoleon at the same time, the British didn’t have enough ships to cover the extensive coastline of America. So, they decided to focus on one area in particular: The Chesapeake Bay.

The fighting began on February 8, 1813. The British captured the Lottery, just one of the many ships the Royal Navy would seize during what would become the nearly two-year-long campaign.

By mid-April, Americans living in small port towns began to directly feel the effects of the war when R. Adm. George Cockburn of Britain sent sailors and marines ashore to raid small port towns. Although he claimed to have paid for any confiscated property, he usually did so with notes that could only be redeemed after the war. At Havre de Grace in Maryland, Cockburn demanded $20,000 from village leaders. When the town refused, a British officer informed town leaders that “your village shall now feel the effects of war.” The British looted and burned most of the town buildings.

Did the young and still somewhat young American military fight back hard enough to win the battle and prove themselves equal to the soldiers of the British Empire? Order your copy of The Chesapeake Campaign, 1813−1814 to find out how the rest of this two-year campaign ended. And stay tuned for the third and final installation of our War of 1812 Series right here on Government Book Talk.

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We know you’re probably busy hanging stockings with care, prepping milk and cookies, and writing letters to the North Pole, but we’re back with another installment of GPO’s gift guide series, and this is our most important gift idea yet! So grab a cozy sweater, take a seat by the fireplace and read this post. Today we’re talking about gift ideas for the active serviceman or servicewoman.

Whether they’re deployed or at home this Christmas, make your favorite soldier a care package to show how much you love them. Some ideas for the package are listed below.

Hot cocoa mix
Mini Christmas tree or menorah
Stringy lights
Holiday cookies
An ornament of something they love
A stocking filled with personal items like floss, a toothbrush, and chapstick
Wacky holiday sweater or Santa hat
Hand-written letters and cards
Hand-made holiday crafts
Framed photo of friends or family members

Don’t forget the entertainment … like books and magazines! Check out the below publications your special soldier might enjoy finding in their gift.

Army History: The Professional Bulletin of Army History, a professional military magazine, published four times a year by the U.S. CMH, is devoted to informing the military history community about new work on the Army’s history. Issues include illustrated articles, commentaries, book reviews, and news about Army history and the U.S. Army Center of Military History. Quarterly issues feature thoughtful illustrated articles about the history of the U.S. Army, incisive book reviews by experts in the field of military history, insightful commentaries, and news notes providing the latest information about CMH activities and publications.

The U.S. Army in the World War I Era is part of the U.S. Army Campaigns of World War I series. Drawn mostly from CMH’s two-volume textbook, American Military History, the pamphlet provides an overview of the decades leading up to the United States joining the World War and the country’s experiences during the eighteen months of involvement in the war. The conflict capped a period of reform and professionalization that transformed the Army from a small dispersed organization rooted in constabulary operations to a modern industrialized fighting force capable of global reach and impact.

Those serving our country give us the gift of freedom every day. Now, it’s their turn to get a gift. Let them know how much you care and how thankful you are for their service. May all our military families have a safe and happy holiday!

October 17 is an important date in American history. Not sure why? The Government Publishing Office, as always, is here with a publication to enlighten you.

On October 17, 1781 (that’s 237 years ago), Lord Cornwallis of Britain surrendered his army at Yorktown. March to Victory: Washington, Rochambeau, and the Yorktown Campaign of 1781, a publication by Dr. Robert Selig, walks readers through the American troops’ march to victory in the Revolutionary War and the large role the French played in helping America gain its independence.

Throughout this booklet learn the endearing details of the relationship between General George Washington and French commander General Rochambeau. Despite having reservations, Rochambeau pledged to use all the resources at his disposal to support Washington’s plan. France promised both to fight and also to agree to no separate peace until Britain formally recognized American independence. To work together to defeat the British under the command of Lord Cornwallis, these French and American military commanders had to overcome formidable barriers of culture, language, tactical doctrine, and political agendas. They used translators to work out plans, including the plan to commence an operation against the British, with Washington focused on an attack in New York and Rochambeau preferring an operation against British forces in the South. In the end, Rochambeau promised his full cooperation in an attack on New York City at the wish of Washington.

Despite having been enemies just 15 years earlier in the French and Indian War, the respect among the French and American troops grew steadily the more they worked together. Jonathan Trumbull, Washington’s private secretary, wrote, “The Junction of the two armies [which] is formed at this Place, & has commenced with high seeming Cordiality & Affection, demonstrated by constant Acts of Conviviality & social Harmony.” Baron Closen of the French army wrote, “I admire the American troops tremendously! It is incredible that soldiers composed of men of every age, even of children of fifteen, of whites and blacks, almost naked, unpaid and rather poorly fed, can march so well and withstand fire so steadfastly.”

General George Washington soon realized, however, that without additional massive reinforcements and material, as well as the assistance of a powerful fleet, an assault on New York had little chance of success. He became convinced it was best to head south. He wrote in his diary that he “could scarce see a ground upon which to continue my preparations against New York, and therefore I turned my views more seriously (than I had done before) to an operation to the southward.”

In early August 1781, French military officer Marquis de Lafayette drafted a report to Washington letting him know that Cornwallis and his men were settling in on the banks of the York River. But to trap the British army, a naval force would be necessary. Again, the Americans turned to the French in their time of need. Rochambeau informed Francois Joseph Paul de Grasse, the commander of the French fleet, of the demand for ships, and de Grasse agreed to send a fleet to Chesapeake. De Grasse’s fleet of 36 ships outnumbered that of the British, who had only 18. However, de Grasse promised to keep his fleet there only until October 15. So, the two commanders in chief hastily adjusted their plans to march south knowing that time was of the essence.

To throw off the British, Washington had a few tricks up his sleeve. He ordered ships for Staten Island and had bake ovens built in New Jersey. Made-up stories about movements and plans were intentionally leaked to the troops, in the hopes that they would be overheard by spies and passed onto the British headquarters. And by dispersing the French and American armies on multiple different routes south, the allies continued their antics to try to confuse their enemy. It wasn’t until early September that the British realized Cornwallis and his troops were in danger. By then, the first units of the Continental Army had already reached the northernmost part of the Chesapeake Bay.

During the march south, several American soldiers quit due to the fact that Robert Morris, financier of the American Revolution, did not have the funds to pay them. Once again, the French stepped in. On September 7, Morris asked Rochambeau if he could lend the Americans money to compensate the troops. Rochambeau gave him almost half the amount left in his treasury. This was the first and only time many Continental soldiers received hard money during their years of service to their country, and to say they were thrilled would be an understatement.

In early September George Washington invited Rochambeau and his staff to stay at his Mount Vernon home. The two commanders continued their journey together and arrived at Williamsburg on September 15 to wait for the arrival of their troops. With a little teamwork, they met with de Grasse and convinced him to keep the French fleet in America until the end of October, buying them more time. After being supplied ships to help them finish out their journey to Virginia, members of the Continental Army were the first to arrive in Virginia. They docked at Archer’s Hope, marched into Williamsburg and camped behind the College of William and Mary. Yes – the college, which was founded in 1693, was already there at that time! The French met them about one week later. Once the French and American troops were all back together again (now in the South), the armies of Washington and Rochambeau finally set out for Yorktown.

Beginning on October 3, 1781, a series of attacks and counterattacks ensued among the British and the French and American forces. On October 16, the British managed to seize two French artillery positions, but the effort ultimately proved unsuccessful. So, they tried it another way and attempted to break the encirclement the French and Americans had created. But as troops were being ferried across the York River to conduct the attack, Mother Nature intervened. A storm disrupted the British operation. Cornwallis began to realize that the Americans and French held a decisive advantage. On October 17, a British officer waved a white handkerchief in surrender. The next day, two British officers met with an American and a French counterpart to negotiate surrender terms. The British government recognized the independence of the United States in the Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the Revolutionary War in 1783.

That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Read the full story of the March to Victory. Order this publication from the Center of Military History at the GPO Bookstore today.

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Picatinny (Arsenal) details the researching, developing, and engineering of the United States Army weapons and munitions facility programs located in New Jersey that have prepared American troops for over a century. With the recent publishing of the FREE eBook edition of Picatinny: The First Century, Government Book Talk interviews its historian-author, Patrick J. Owens, for a firsthand account of the history of the Picatinny Arsenal.

GBT: What inspired your organization to write the book?

Agency: Inspiration is too grandiloquent a word for the motivations which led to this book. The organization supported publication of the book to make the outside world aware of the varied and significant contributions Picatinny Arsenal has made to national defense, especially in the area of munitions production and development.

The historian shared in this motivation. Moreover, he was facing the fact of his own aging and wished to leave an ordered record of what he knew about Picatinny history before too many brain cells decayed.

A third reason was the overwhelming desire of old men to tell stories, and many of his most interesting involve Picatinny.

GBT: How did you come up with the title?

Owens: The title followed from the period covered, from the installation’s founding in 1880 to its centennial. The choice of terminal date was due, first of all, to the fact a book needs to end sometime. Second, by 1980, Picatinny had assumed its present duties, research, development, and engineering of all Army armaments and munitions. Telling how it came to assume these duties gave the narrative a sense of direction.

GBT: What is the overall message you want readers to grasp?

Owens: Hopefully, readers will realize building the installation and performing its multiple tasks was not easy.

GBT: What is the single “don’t miss” chapter, page, chart, or fact in you publication and why?

Owens: The chapter most readers will probably single out covers the explosion in 1926 which leveled Picatinny, Lake Denmark Naval Ammunition Depot, and surrounding communities. This is certainly the chapter highest on drama.

The photos of the damage are the items most likely to catch the notice of a browser thumbing the book and move him or her to actually peruse the text.

This is the only blast to rate an entire chapter but not the only blast in the book. When you work with explosives, explosion is always a risk. Each chapter discusses at least one occasion when risk became reality.

GBT: What was the hardest part of writing the book? What were the challenges (research, literary, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?

Agency: The hardest challenge in any writing is for the author is to force the seat of his pants into the seat of a chair and begin filling white space with black characters.

Otherwise, the author of this work was very fortunate in having ample and various research materials close at hand. Many workers and residents through the years were very good about recording their work, and many of the installation’s newspapers and other publications survive to allow putting names and, often, faces with deeds. These cover not only big accomplishments, but daily life on the arsenal.

The author could not have brought the events surrounding the 1926 explosion, assuming he gave them life, if a local historian had not compiled a scrapbook of newspaper clippings from the days immediately following the event. Many of the newspapers no longer and exist, and few of those remaining are scrupulous archive keepers.

The author was very fortunate in the services he received from local libraries and historical societies.

Previous historical studies of Picatinny were very useful, especially the architectural surveys that allowed him to sound knowledgeable when discussing pediments and cornices.

GBT: Do you have anything particular that you want to say to you readers in parting, a memorable quote.

Owens: No. If there is nothing memorable in over 300 pages, it is too late to redeem the situation now.

Patrick J. Owens

Historian (retired)

Picatinny Arsenal

About the Agency/Organization

GBT: What are the next upcoming unclassified projects for your organization?

Agency: Picatinny continues to accomplish much in the way of armament and munitions research and development, so there should be ample material for Picatinny: The Second Century. However, despite science’s efforts to extend the human life span, it is doubtful the present writer will be up to literary composition in the 2080s.

Picatinny has a historical section on its website, and the Picatinny archaeologist maintains another website on the history of installation buildings. The latter is part of Picatinny’s historic preservation work.

GBT: What steps is your agency taking to promote this book?

Agency: It is distributing promotional copies to local colleges, libraries, and historical societies. It is especially hopeful about the historical societies as generators of book orders.

GBT: What other steps in addition to this book to get the word out about this topic?

Agency: The present Picatinny historian continues writing and speaking to local groups on the subject. He may, even, sneak in references to this book.

GBT: Did you personally learn anything from this book and what was it?

Agency: This book was part of learning experience which began when its writer became historian for a science and engineering organization. His education had stressed the humanities, but, though he remained Picatinny’s token technophobe, he became more comfortable with technical topics. Much credit is due the countless technical people who showed patience with the historian’s ignorance.

HOW DO YOU OBTAIN PICATINNY: THE FIRST CENTURY (EBOOK)?

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While most people know something about the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, few are aware of the Japanese attack and invasion of Alaska’s Aleutian Islands from June 3 to 7, 1942. Attu is the westernmost of the Aleutian Islands and one of the Near Islands. On Attu Island, the Japanese captured 42 residents of Attu, including the island’s school teacher. Forty people were transported to Otaru, Hokkaido Island, Japan. They were held as prisoners of war from September 1942 until 1945. Twenty-one people died during their internment, including four babies, born in Japan. In 2012, the National Park Service published Nick Golodoff’s Attu Boy. Golodoff was six when his family was captured and sent to Japan. This book combines transcriptions of the oral histories of Attu survivors with Golodoff’s memoir. Sadly, during the war, Golodoff’s village was destroyed, and the United States Government opted to annex the island for military purposes. The Aleuts were not allowed to return.

In June 1942, the United States launched its first offensive in the Pacific, the Aleutian Campaign. From June 1942 to May 1943 Japan held the Island of Attu. The Battle of Attu took place May 11−30, 1943. With Canadian support, U.S. forces defeated Japanese forces in what was the second deadliest battle in the Pacific Theater. More than 3,000 Japanese and Americans died fighting on Attu. Attu: the Forgotten Battle, a new book by John Haile Cloe, explores that battle and its impact on the island. Aleutian Islands from The U.S. Army Center of Military History provides an overview of the Aleutian Islands Campaign.

On March 29, 1973, President Richard Nixon welcomed home the last of the combat military members from the Vietnam War. In honor of that day, we now celebrate their return and the sacrifices our soldiers made to serve our nation proudly overseas. The U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) offers access to the Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act of 2017, which designated March 29 as Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Day, through the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP).

GPO’s govinfo offers the original Presidential Proclamation for Vietnam Veterans Day in 1974. As well as several other items from Congressional Records during the period.

The Vietnam War era saw the American citizens sick of decades of foreign wars, and who blamed the soldiers who fought them upon their return. Because of this unfavorable environment, the Vietnam War Veterans waited decades for their sacrifices to be formally recognized.

More than 2.7 million Americans served in uniform in Vietnam, with more than 58,000 of those service members killed during the war. The Tet Offensive played an important role in weakening U.S. public support for the war in Vietnam.

In January of 1968, during the lunar new year (or “Tet”) holiday, North Vietnamese and communist Viet Cong forces launched a coordinated attack against a number of targets in South Vietnam.

The U.S. and South Vietnamese militaries sustained heavy losses before finally repelling the communist assault. This was widely considered the final straw in an already unpopular American war, and led to the withdrawal of all American forces a few years later.

GPO has printed several publications throughout the years that illustrate the intricacies of this contested war.

GPO’s Government Bookstore offers many publications that can help you pay homage to this unique history. Some of those include:

Combat Operations: Staying the Course, October 1967-December 1968 describes the twelve-month period when the Viet Cong and their North Vietnamese allies embarked on a new and more aggressive strategy that shook the foundations of South Vietnam and forced the United States to reevaluate its military calculations in Southeast Asia. Hanoi’s general offensive-general uprising brought the war to South Vietnam’s cities for the first time and disrupted the allied pacification program that was just beginning to take hold in some rural areas formerly controlled by the Communists. For the enemy, however, those achievements came at a staggering cost in manpower and material; more importantly, the Tet offensive failed to cripple the South Vietnamese government or convince the United States to abandon its ally. As the dust settled from the Viet Cong attacks, President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered his military commanders to press ahead with their current strategy unchanged apart from some short-term tactical adjustments and a modest increase in the U.S. troop deployment. His decision to stay the course seemed to bear fruit as the allies repaired their losses and then forged new gains throughout the summer and autumn of 1968. Even so, the allied situation at the end of this period appeared to be only marginally better than it had been in late 1967; the peace talks in Paris had stalled, and American public opinion had turned decisively against the war.

Melvin Laird and the Foundation of the Post-Vietnam Military, 1969-1973 . Melvin Laird became President Richard Nixon’s secretary of defense in January 1969. His challenging agenda included two goals: withdrawing the U.S. military from Vietnam and reshaping U.S. the armed forces for the future. He worked toward ending the inequitable draft system and replacing it with an all-volunteer force of regulars supported by National Guard and Reserve components. Laird’s tenure was also marked by battles with Congress and the administration over the defense budget and the antiballistic military system as well as efforts to strengthen alliances with NATO, East Asian allies, and Israel.

Advice and Support: The Final Years, 1965-1973 . In Advice and Support: The Final Years, 1965-1973, Jeffrey J. Clarke describes the U.S. Army advisory effort to the South Vietnamese armed forces during the period when the U.S. commitment in Southeast Asia was at its peak. The account encompasses a broad spectrum of activities at several levels, from the physically demanding work of the battalion advisers on the ground to the more sophisticated undertakings of senior military officers at the highest echelons of the American military assistance command in Saigon.

U.S. Army Campaigns of the Vietnam War: Taking the Offensive, October 1966-September 1967 . Taking the Offensive, October 1966–September 1967, by Glenn F. Williams, begins with a discussion of Operation ATTLEBORO in Tay Ninh Province. The largest allied operation to date in the war, ATTLEBORO forced the 9th PLAF Division to abandon its attack on Suoi Da Special Forces camp and cost over 1,000 enemy lives. Additional action in War Zone C, including Operations CEDAR FALLS, JUNCTION CITY, and JUNCTION CITY II, highlight the U.S. Army effort to disrupt the network of camps and supply stores of the North Vietnamese main force units through ground and air assault. Operations in Binh Dinh Province — THAYER I, THAYER II, PERSHING, and LEJUNE — continued to inflict heavy losses on the enemy. The efforts of the U.S. Army throughout Vietnam during this time allowed for growing political stability in South Vietnam leading up to the 3 September 1967 election. This pamphlet contains twelve maps and fifteen illustrations.

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